*Spoilers* UFC 104: Lyoto Machida Vs. Mauricio Rua - Oct, 24, 2009

In May, Lyoto Machida electrified the mixed martial arts world with a stirring knockout of Rashad Evans. On Saturday, October 24th, “The Dragon” will make the first defense of his UFC light heavyweight crown in the main event of UFC 104 against former PRIDE star Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, who is coming off back-to-back knockouts of Chuck Liddell and Mark Coleman.

In the co-feature, two of the top young heavyweight contenders in the sport will clash, as unbeaten Cain Velasquez takes on former IFL star “Big” Ben Rothwell in what promises to be one of the most memorable bouts of 2009.

I'm excited for the main card. Style clash between Machida and Shogun should be exciting, though I doubt it'll last more than a round and a half. Leg kick-off between Barry and Hardonk will be awesome too, and I'm hoping Rothwell's takedown defense can test Velasquez a bit.

Lyoto Machida Vs. Mauricio Rua - I don't get this. Shogun is 2-1 in the UFC, losing to Griffin and then beating an ancient Coleman and washed up Liddel, and he is getting a title shot? Are you kidding me?

Best option available, nothing more. Rampage and Rashad were planning to fight each other at the end of TUF 10 when this matchup was made. Forrest was set to fight Anderson just 2 months before UFC 104, and not double-booking him turned out to be a smart move, considering how that fight turned out.

Who else in the LHW division really deserves a title shot right now? Shogun is the best choice based on his former stature in Pride, and a fairly impressive performance against Chuck (no matter how washed up Liddell may be) in April.

Thiago isn't compelling or deserving based on his first fight with Lyoto, and he took Jardine completely out of the picture in their fight. Rich Franklin not only just lost, but hasn't been at 205 consistently enough to put 2 wins together in that division. Cane hasn't fought anyone yet, and isn't marketable either. I'd love to see a fight against Lil' Nog, but he hasn't even had his first UFC fight, and needs to beat someone at least top 15 before he deserves a title shot.